One has often heard this in client conference rooms: ‘why can’t we build a brand without any advertising? Like Google?’. One can, if everyone had a Google-like product. Thanks to a heady mix of great product and PR, Google rarely had to use advertising to promote it’s search engine. With Microsoft offering some serious competition via Bing, Google has perhaps seen the need to get back at Microsoft. Google is now taking billboards across several…
A nice little bonus for my blogging efforts arrived by mail today: my first cheque from Google, ‘earnings as part of the Google Adsense Program’. I must admit it was cool to see an envelope from P.O. Box 4037, Buffalo, NY with a cheque ‘ordered by’ Google Inc., Mountain View, CA. It was a small amount but feels good nevertheless. So here’s a big thanks to my wife for putting up with my blogging habits.…
Global downturn, loss making airline brands, a wallet-watching traveler – not exactly the best of times for the tourism business. Nation Branding too would be impacted in such times. On Indian TV channels, Korea is advertising with their ‘Korea, Sparkling!’ campaign. Apparently, the slogan is not too popular back home in Korea and may be dropped soon. Advertising for a nation as a brand does play a role in creating perceptions. But that is not…
Came across this post about CrowdSPRING, over at The Marketing Technology Blog. CrowdSPRING labels itself as a marketplace for creative services. Essentially, buyers post their requirement for logos, T-shirt designs and the like on the site. They also specify a budget and the deadline. Then designers or just about anybody can submit their actual designs. So in essence, the designs are for all to see and there is no guarantee of compensation. CriwdSPRING keeps 15%…
Should Thursday Be the New Friday? The Environmental and Economic Pluses of the 4-Day Workweek http://tr.im/ua3w # @rameshsrivats that Max theme is nice. Just right for your tweets. in reply to rameshsrivats # Free online archive of vintage TV commercials http://bit.ly/HTsvb # Tweeting from the Web? Nine Alternative Web Clients http://tr.im/udzm # Listening to Use Somebody by Kings of Leon on Grooveshark: http://tinysong.com/2sGP # Timeline of newspaper edition shutdowns in the US http://tr.im/uf8N # The…
Financial Times has been releasing ads in The Economist over the last few weeks, highlighting the benefits of their search capabilities. FT recently launched Newssift, a search tool exclusively for business professionals. I am not sure if the claim of better search for business is linked to this, but it surely drives home the point. The other ad in the series show how a search for EMU usually leads to stories about the bird and…
Yes, I am late on this – David Ogilvy’s 10th death anniversary was on July 22nd. But it’s never too late to remember someone who has perhaps had the greatest influence on the advertising agency business. I don’t think many of the executives who join advertising nowadays are aware of his books, his views and his work. A pity really. So any newbies reading this, please pick up Ogilvy on Advertising, pronto. Ogilvy on Advertising…
Quick. Name the car that owns the ‘safety’ platform? And the car that is strongly associated with ‘German engineering excellence’? Chances are that most would have answered Volvo for the former and Mercedes Benz for the latter. Several car brands have talked about spacious interiors as a feature. The renditions range from the mundane (the whole family and the dog) to the interesting. A campaign for Citroen’s Spacebox, doing the rounds of ad blogs, has…